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16th Oct 2026
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What makes RGS Newcastle The Telegraph’s Best Value Independent School

Why RGS Newcastle's been named Best Value Independent School in Borders and Tyne

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This autumn, RGS Newcastle has just been named Best Value Independent School for the Borders and Tyne region by The Telegraph, and it’s quite the endorsement for an independent school in Newcastle that’s been helping North East youngsters reach their potential for more than 500 years.

The award, announced in September 2026 as part of The Telegraph’s The Best Value Private Schools in Every Region, isn’t a bolt from the blue either. The paper had already rated RGS Newcastle ‘Very Good’ value in its Best Value Private Schools Guide in both 2025 and 2026.

So, what does best value actually look like when you’re weighing up a private school in the North East? We’ve taken a closer look.

IT’S MORE THAN A SET OF EXAM RESULTS

For Headmaster Geoffrey Stanford, the recognition gets right to the heart of what RGS is all about.

“We are proud that families are not simply paying for a set of exam results, but for an education that gives young people opportunities, confidence and experiences that can shape the rest of their lives. RGS Newcastle being recognised for best value is a wonderful endorsement of that approach.”

You’ll see that approach in the everyday things families genuinely rely on. There’s supervised care from 7.45am until 5.45pm, Saturday sport, educational visits throughout the year, and a well-connected city-centre campus with excellent facilities and easy access by public transport.

Pair that with strong academic outcomes and a community where children are known, supported and challenged, and you start to see where the value comes from. At RGS, value isn’t a price tag. It’s about preparing young people to enter the world as confident, capable and kind individuals.

THE GOOD SCHOOLS GUIDE’S VERDICT

The Telegraph isn’t the only one taking notice. The Good Schools Guide’s reviews of both the Junior and Senior Schools describe a school that’s held on to its academic edge while putting wellbeing front and centre.

Reviewing the Junior School, the guide praised “a school that nurtures curiosity, confidence and kindness,” adding that “the emphasis is on developing fully rounded children, who are confident and articulate.” Reviewers also noticed that “children talk eagerly about everyone being kind and pupils not being left out.”

At Senior School level, the guide picked up on what parents and older students called “a perceptible shift in priorities”, with support, wellbeing and pastoral care now sitting firmly alongside academic challenge. Pupils told reviewers they feel supported through subject clinics and a real focus on mental wellbeing.

The verdict? “The result is a school which values the whole child.”

CONFIDENCE THAT’S BUILT FROM DAY ONE

Life at RGS starts in the co-educational Junior School, where curiosities are actively encouraged. Everything’s guided by the RGS Superpowers of Able, Strong, Calm and Kind, four simple values that help pupils build resilience, self-belief and solid academic foundations.

Move up to the Senior School and the options really open up. Your child could be representing the school on the sports field, performing on stage, joining an academic society or volunteering, all alongside a diverse community of peers.

Sixth Formers get extra support through programmes like PLUS and Complementary Studies, which get them ready for university, careers and life beyond the school gates. Through the school’s Futures programme, students receive expert guidance on university applications, degree apprenticeships and career pathways, helping them make informed decisions about what comes next.

OPPORTUNITIES THAT DON’T STOP AT THE CLASSROOM DOOR

Breadth is where RGS really shines. Sixth Form students can choose from more than 30 subjects, with options including A-Level Business Studies and A-Level Photography, plus a BTEC in Sport and Exercise Science. Each year, students also join RGS Sixth Form from schools across the region, attracted by its broad subject choice, Futures provision and extensive co-curricular opportunities.

Then there’s the co-curricular offer, with more than 170 activities to get stuck into. Whether your child dreams of treading the boards, leading a society, chasing a scientific question, or launching their first business idea, there’s room for it here.

RGS firmly believes that what happens outside lessons feeds success inside them. The Combined Cadet Force (CCF), sports teams, volunteering, and a packed timetable of clubs all help students pick up life skills that’ll stay with them long after results day.

PASTORAL CARE THAT’S PERSONAL

Happy, thriving students sit at the centre of everything RGS does, and its pastoral support backs that up.

Every student has a Form Supervisor as their daily point of contact, part of a dedicated year-group team led by a Head of Year and Assistant Head of Year. Senior School students also have a Tutor, with tutor groups linked to the House system and mixing different ages to build lasting connections with students and their families.

There’s practical health support on site too. Two school nurses are on hand for both physical and mental health, a GP visits once a week, and two School Counsellors support the wider school community.

In Sixth Form, it gets even more personal, with every student backed by a form supervisor, a personal tutor, a dedicated UCAS advisor, and the pastoral team. Every student is seen as an individual and supported to thrive.

SEE WHY IT’S WORTH IT FOR YOURSELF

If you’re weighing up an independent school in Newcastle for your child, there’s nothing like seeing it in action. That’s exactly what RGS is inviting families to do this November.

RGS NEWCASTLE OPEN MORNING

Saturday 14th November 2026

Open Morning’s your chance to explore the school’s sites, meet staff and students, and get a real feel for how RGS helps young people thrive, from their very first school years right through to university and beyond.

BOOK NOW

Want to know more about joining RGS? Find out everything you need about admissions online.

Rachael Ellis

Head of Content

After gaining a first in her BA Media and Journalism degree at Northumbria University, Rachael worked at Newcastle’s leading regional newspaper with her stories being picked up in national and global newspapers. She spent two very successful years giving a voice to those communities across the North East who otherwise…